Anouar Boukhars, a non-resident scholar in the Middle East Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, published on 23 January 2013 a good analysis titled What's Next for Mali and Algeria?

He concluded that the message from the attack on the gas field at In Amenas in Algeria was clear. Algeria will be firm in dealing with terrorists, but its counterterrorism units are not trained for rescue missions that require precision and utmost care to minimize civilian casualties. The hostage crisis demonstrated the limits of Algeria's approach to fighting violent extremism. Algeria only succeeded in internationalizing its war with the Islamists.

Boukhars added that the ruling class in Bamako seems more interested in recapturing the north of Mali and "restoring an intolerable status quo ante than in facilitating national reconciliation, recovery, and reconstruction."

blogAfrica is allAfrica.com's platform to help you keep an ear on the African blogosphere. We draw diverse voices from around the world who post regularly and insightfully about African issues. Bloggers, submit your blog's rss-feed!